Hi GMAT Magooshers, I'm Melody, and if you're early in your GMAT journey- just starting out
maybe you're not even sure where to begin then you've come to the right place because I have a
great first step for you as a suggestion. And while you're here visiting please make sure
to like this video and if you find it helpful make sure you subscribe to our channel so that
you're aware of more content coming very soon. So the question is, should you take a practice test
if you haven't even started studying for the GMAT yet? Intuitively you might say
no that doesn't make any sense, why would I test myself if I haven't done anything to prepare?
But, I'm here to tell you that taking a practice test early on is a very important part of your
GMAT journey. One thing that you really want to do from that experience is to establish a baseline,
that's going to help you to track your progress to compare your score with those of other test
takers and to make good decisions about your study strategies. So what is a baseline? Well,
in science a baseline is the initial state, the starting point. It's observed, it's measured,
and the reason we measure that is so that later on we can collect data about changes
to those numbers- to those scores after the first test. So basically what that means is
that you're going to be able to see the progress that you're making compared to your starting point
and that's going to help you feel motivated and to make choices about your study strategy. So we do
recommend for sure taking a practice test right at the beginning of your studies or early on.
Later on in your studies there are more times when you should be taking full length
GMAT practice tests and for more information on that check out the video already on our channel
called 'Should I Be Taking Practice Tests When Studying for the GMAT?' that'll help you make
some decisions about scheduling more than one practice test. So when you've got that initial
baseline score let's talk about what some of that information might mean. First of all if your score
isn't really on track with what your final goal score would be, that's perfectly normal. It's just
your starting point, so don't stress out and don't get discouraged, see it as useful information.
So if your score is in what would be considered the middle range- that would be somewhere between
a 500 and a 650 or so, then you fall between the 25th and the 75th percentile. At that current
baseline score part that means that you're in the biggest group of standard test takers.
That's the most versatile group and you'll find that most study plans are going to fit
your needs pretty well with only maybe some minor adjustments for your personal needs. If your test
score is a little bit lower maybe in the 400 to 500 range to begin with for that baseline score
then you fall somewhere in the 10th to 25th percentile. That will tell you that you
might need to work a little bit harder than most standard study plans recommend to get your score
where you want it to be and especially you might have to supplement some of your study with review
of information on unfamiliar concepts. As long as you know that then you can make sure that you're
doing that when you come across a concept that you don't recognize or haven't seen in a while.
If your score to begin with is a little bit higher on that first practice test maybe in the 650 to
700 range then you're somewhere between about the 75th and the 90th percentile. In that case you'll
find that the study plans out there for the GMAT will focus mostly on fundamentals. They definitely
will help you review concepts, they definitely talk about study strategies that you should apply.
But if you're shooting for a top tier score then you should expect to have to supplement your study
with digging deeper on some of the more rare more advanced topics that you might see on the exam. If
that initial test score is in the upper or lower 10 percentiles of students, so between 200 and
400 on the low end or 700 and 800 on the high end then you might want to consider whether studying
for the GMAT is really the best use of your time, whether you need to do more prep before you begin
your journey or if your score might already be at the range where you're very satisfied with it. So
in conclusion yes you should absolutely take a practice test very early on in your studies if
you haven't started yet that's a great first thing to do. If you're early in your studies and you
haven't done that yet I recommend scheduling one for yourself very soon, that's going to
help you get that baseline score, determine your current skill level, and track your progress along
the way. Remember you'll be doing that by use of some additional practice tests among other things
that's going to help you compare your percentile score with those of other test takers
and make good predictions about how intensely you're going to have to prepare for the test.
Don't expect your baseline score to be your final score but expect it to be very useful information
that will get you on the road to GMAT success.
So go out there get those test scores and get started down the path, good luck!